In the recent past, threats from climate change and unforeseeable environmental extremes to plant growth and productivity have consistently increased. The climate change-driven effects, especially from unpredictable environmental fluctuations, can result in an increased prevalence of abiotic and biotic stresses in plants. These stresses have slowed down the global yields of crop plants. On the other hand, food security for the rapidly growing human population in a sustainable ecosystem is a major concern of the present-day world. Thus, understanding the core developmental, physiological and molecular aspects that regulate plant growth and productivity in a challenging environment is a pivotal issue to be tackled by the scientific community dealing with sustainable agricultural and horticultural practices. 
Plants are influenced by the adverse environmental conditions at various levels, their different and diverse responses play a significant rolein determining their growth, production and the overall geographical distribution. The chapters in this book focus on the biological mechanisms and fundamental principles that determine how different plant species grow, perform and interact with a challenging environment. 
This book covers a broad range of topics in plant science, including gene function, molecules, physiology, cell biology and plant ecology, to understand the functioning of plants under harsh environmental conditions. The book elucidates the physiological and molecular mechanisms in different plant species, ecophysiological interactions of plants, interplay between plant roots, arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria, biosensors for monitoring stress, production of secondary metabolites, stress alleviation processes, and more.

1. The harsh environment and resilient plants - An overview

2. Expression and regulation of stress-responsive genes in plants under harsh environmental conditions
3. Genome editing: A tool from the vault of science for engineering climate-resilient cereals
4. Advancement in molecular and fast breeding programmes for climate resilient agriculture practices
5. Recombinant DNA technology for sustainable plant growth and production
6. Regulatory role of micro-RNAs in plants under challenging environmental conditions with special focus on drought and salinity
7. Molecular mechanisms of heat shock proteins for sustainable plant growth and production
8. Physiological and molecular responses to heavy metals stresses in plants
9. Morpho-anatomical, physiological, biochemical and molecular responses of plants to air pollution
10. Physiological and molecular responses to high, chilling and freezing temperature in plant growth and production: consequences and mitigation possibilities
11. Physiological and molecular responses to salinity due to excessive Na+ in plants
12. Physiological and molecular responses to drought, submergence and excessive watering in plants
13. Mitogen-activated protein kinase, plants and heat stress
14. Cross talk between heme oxygenase 1 and lateral root development for salt tolerance
15. Salt-tolerant plant growth promoting rhizobacteria: A new-fangled approach for improving crop yield
16. Improving resilience against drought stress among crop plants through inoculation of plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria
17. Trends in biosensors and current detection methods for stress monitoring of plants growing in adverse environmental conditions
18. Secondary metabolites for sustainable plant growth and production under adverse environment conditions
19. Medicinal plants and their pharmaceutical properties under adverse environment conditions
20. Progress and major research challenges under changing environmental conditions.